Electric-fixture support for outlet-boxes.



PATENTED JUNE 28, 1904.

W. P. BOSSERT. ELECTRIC FIXTURE SUPPORT FOR OUTLET BOXES.

APPLIOATION PILED JAN. 9. 1904,

NO MODEL.

UNITED 'STA TES Patented June 28, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

VILLIAM F. BOSSERT, OF UTICA, NEWY YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE BOSSERTELECTRIC CONSTRUOTION COMPANY, OF UTIOA, NEW YORK.

ELECTRlC-'FIXTURE SUPPORT FOR OUTLET-BOXES.

SPECIFICATION formng part of Letters Patent No. 763,355, dated June 28,1904.

Application filed January 9, 1904. Serial No` 188,296. (No model.)

T0 (tll wlwm, it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM F. BossER'i', residing at Utica, in thecounty of Oneida and State of New York, have invented certainImprovements in Electric-Fixture Supports for Outlet-Boxes, of which thefollowing is a specification.

The present invention relates to improvements in interior-conduitoutlet-boxes, and especially to the outlet-boxes provided with means forsupporting inside thereof the electric-fixture supporting-lamps whichare fed with current from the conductors entering in said box. Theinterior conduits and the boxes at which they terminate are placed inposition before the plastering is applied to the walls, and itfrequently happens that the Outlet-box is not in alinement with the faceof the plastering, and consequently the fixture-'does not present a trueappearance with the face of the wall, which detracts greatly from thedesigned effect. To obviate this defect was the object of Patent No. 725,664, dated April 21, 1903, granted to me, and upon which thisinvention is an improvement. In the said patent a suitable sphericalsurface is provided within the box, in contact with which is a curvedsurface forming the inner end of a support for the electric-lampfixture. The said support (and its curved surface) is firmly andadjustably held to the said surface within the box by bolts or screwswhich pass through arms from the said support and are threaded into thewall of the box, and by means of the bolts or' whereby the said supportis electrically separated from the box, as I will now proceed todescribe, and point out in the appended claims.

Of the drawings which illustrate the invention, Figure 1 is a sectionalview of an outlet- 5o box illustrating the invention. Fig. 2 is a planview of an element shown in Fig. 1. Fig.

3 is a sectional view of an Outlet-box, also showing the invention; andFig. A is a plan View of an element shown in the previous 5 5 figure.Figs. 5 and 6 are sectional views showing modifications of the structureof the invention.

In Fig. 1, a represents an Outlet-box made from thin Sheet metal andprovided with 6o partly formed and weakened openings .r/-that is, themetal is partly pressed out and can be fully forced out by a blow from ahammer and an opening f/ is thus shown in the bottom wall w of the box.A cover b is represented as secured to the box a by screws, and it has acentral opening o, surrounded by a fiange. W'ithin the box is a supportA for an electrical fixture, which is screwed upon the outer end e,which is threaded for that purpose. The support A is mainly constructedas represented in the patent referred to, to which reference is made,and has its inner end provided with a hollowed-out orspherically-concaved surfaceij, and its periphery is provided with aplurality of arms f, having holes through which extend the bolts orscrews w' to thebottom wall of the box into threaded holes therein. Thebolts or screws n are insulated from the arms f by the insulating-thim-So bles (Z. B is a detachable and independent disk of insulation, suchas hard rubber or vulcanized fiber or other insulating material, and hasan upper convex surface K, fitting into the concave surface j' of thesupport A. The S 5 lower side of the disk has an offset 2', which fitsinto the hole g in the bottom of the box and holds it firmly in place,and when the box is i??l aim by turning the bolts or screws 'a in andout of the bottom wall w the support A can be adjusted and brought intoa right angle with the face of the plastering, whether the front of thebox is in alinement or not, and then the bolts 01' screws will hold thetwo surfaces 7' and K to each other and to the bottom wall of the box,and at the same time theI fix- .ture-support A is fully insulated fromthe box a and from the metal conduits which enter the same, and alldanger of current leaking thereto is obviated.

Fig. 2 indicates the same features shown in Fig. 1, except that thecurvature of the surfaces y' and K is reversed, and the block or disk Bis represented as and may be made of glass or porcelain orl anyvitrified material.

In Fig. 5 I represent a piece of insulation B of an oval cross-section,providing convex surfaces to be interposed between the bottom wall w ofthe box and the concaved surface of the support. Its lower curved siderests in and is centered in the hole g of the wall w. It will be readilyunderstood that this interposed piece may be entirely spherical, ifdesired.

Fig. 6 represents the bottom wall w of the box as swelling up into itsinterior, the upper curvature or surface P fitting into the concavedsurface of the inner end of the support A. ln this case the interposedinsulation m is attaohed to the support A and moves with it.

It will be understood that the intention of the invention is that thesurfaces j and K shall be of opposite curvature, one of which will be ofinsulating material, so. that the fixture-support A may be properlyadjusted, combined with the adjusting arms and bolts or screws, wherebythe support and its arms are moved as a whole whenever the bolts arelengthened or shortened as described. I/Vhat I claim is--- 1. In anOutlet-box, an opening in the bottom of the box with two or morebolt-holes about the same; a support for a fixture having a screw-threadat its outer end, and a spherical surface at its inner end, withboltholes at its integral periphery; an insulatingblock between saidouter end of the support and the bottom of the box adapted to rest inthe opening thereof having a stationary spherical surface coincidingwith the movable spherical surface of said support, with adjustablemeans for holding the said surfaces to each other and to the bottom ofthe box consisting of bolts or screws passing through the holes in thesaid periphery and through the holes in the bottom and insulatedtherefrom, as set forth.

2. A metal Outlet-box having partly-weakened openings in its walls, oneof which is punctured, and surrounded by a plurality of threaded holes;a support for a fixture having a screw-thread at its outer end, and aspherical surface at its inner end with a plurality of integralperforated arms, said perforations registering with the holes in thesaid wall, an independent and detachable insulating-piece interposedbetween the end of the said support and the wall of the box, having astationary spherical surface engaging the movable spherical surface ofthe support with adjusting bolts or screws passing through the said armsand insulated therefrom into the said threaded holes, as set forth.

3. A metal Outlet-box having partly-weakened openings in its walls, oneof which is punctured, and surrounded by a plurality of threaded holes;a support for afixture having a screw-thread at its outer end and aconcave surface at its inner end with a plurality of perforations at itsperiphery registering with the holes in said wall, an independent anddetachable insulating-piece interposed between the end of thesaidsupport and the wall of the box having a stationary convex sphericalsurface engaging the movable concave surface of the support on one sideand resting in the said punctured hole on the other side, with adjustingbolts or screws passing through the perforations in said periphery andinsulated therefrom into the said threaded holes, as set forth.

4. In anl Outlet-box, a support for a fixture having means at its outerend for securing the fixture thereto, and at its inner end a sphericalsurface, and insulated bolt-holes in its periphery; an independent anddetachable insulating-pece between the inner end of the support and thewall of the box having a stationary spherical surface engaging Vthemovable spherical surface on the inner end of the support, andadjustable means for holding the said surfaces to each other and to thewall consisting of bolts or screws passing through the said insulatedholes into threaded holes in the bottom of the box, as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses, this 6th day of January, 1904. i

WILLIAM F. BOSSERT.

W'itnesses:

FRnDnnIoK T. FoxENBnRGER, WM. H. MATT1N.

IOO

